Our (Tara and my) work in Kanyubeh is backed and prompted by a British couple who are funding the construction of a Nursery School. We’ve been working with them since Feb. to get the school open. D & J are funding it with a charity they created, the Gambia Upcountry Charity, and in early November one of their primary fundraisers came to Kanyubeh to work for 2 weeks. Over the two weeks they were there, E. and S. met everyone in the village, registered children for class, held school committee meetings and worked on the construction of the school. The village fell in love with them (ha- I did a little to if you can’t tell…). They motivated the village with model classes and even held a football tournament for the kids!
It’s been great working with the Brits (as I refer to them as). They are all committed to supporting the village and helping to make the nursery school sustainable. When we as Peace Corps Volunteers meet other white people in the Gambia we are usually pretty skeptical of their intentions. Too often we see people just come in and dump money on a project and leave, without any preplanning or follow up. This experience has truly been collaboration between the charity, Peace Corps and especially the Gambians and the village.
No comments:
Post a Comment